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Not Your Grandma’s Bingo June 4, 2014

It’s a beautiful thing when a restaurant partners up with local charities. Sure, there are your standard fundraiser nights that many chain restaurants do where you get a portion of the proceeds..and then there is “Not Your Grandma’s Bingo” which is just a whole new level of fundraising. Every month they feature a different charity, this month happens to be my friend Sarah (also known on this blog as my organic produce pusher) and her mother, Dr. Nicki Pike’s charity West Coast Cancer Connection.

(Dr. Nicki on the Left and Sarah on the right)

West Coast Cancer Connection is a non-profit that shares resources, information and hosts support groups. The organization was created after Dr. Nicki’s brother was diagnosed with cancer so it has a very local and personal mission to it.

And then there is Bingo. Now, I remember the bingo my grandmothers and aunts talked about going to and I can attest to the fact that this is not their bingo. For a $10 buy in I got 10 cards plus a glass of wine (beer, cocktail or fountain drink was also an option) and then we played. When I sat down I was warned from a fellow player that she was loud and obnoxious so hopefully I didn’t get offended easily…I knew I was in the right place.

And seriously, players were really getting into it, from our hostesses finding clever ways to yell the numbers, to everyone yelling out the same thing at key times to throwing our bingo cards at the winner it was a really fun way to raise money for a really good charity. It was also really great to get to know Dr. Nicki more and to hear about the charity. She told us some funny stories of her brother who sounded like a fun guy who would have gotten a kick out of the event. Which made it personal, there was a face to the name and tangible stories to go with the purpose. My money wasn’t just going into some bin as I walked past a door, I got to have fun while learning about a Southern California Charity that is doing something for the community.

Plus there is Chapter One’s delicious food. For one cannot play bingo without snacking.

The bingo happens every Monday but for the month of June the West Coast Cancer Connection will be the beneficiary. So if you are in the area come join me for some bingo and munchies! Because this is definitely not your grandma’s bingo.